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Investigation on the Prevention and Treatment Measures of Seepage Failure of the Fine-Grained Tailings Dam: A Case of Iron Tailings Reservoir in China

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Abstract

To address the problem of seepage failure that affects the stability of the fine-grained tailings dam, two kinds of prevention and treatment measures were proposed involving composite flocculants and composite curing agents. The orthogonal test was conducted to determine the optimal ratio flocculant (ORF) and the optimal ratio curing agent (ORCG). Then, numerical models were established to evaluate the effects of the prevention and treatment measures on the seepage and stability of the tailings dam. The results show that the mechanical properties and microstructure of the tailings are significantly improved by adding the ORF and ORCG. Furthermore, numerical studies suggest that the addition of the ORF and the ORCG to the tailings improves the factor of safety of the tailings dam, but the addition of the ORCG also increases the height of the phreatic line. It is also speculated that the addition of the ORF can prevent the formation of through failure zone in the tailings dam. Therefore, the optimal measure to prevent seepage failure in the tailings dam is adding an appropriate amount of the ORF, as it reduces the height of the dam’s phreatic line and lowers the risk of seepage failure. The typical area susceptible to seepage failure can be treated by adding the ORCG. However, it is important to ensure adequate drainage of the area and to maintain the phreatic line at a reasonable buried depth.

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The experimental data used to support the findings of this study are included within the article.

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Funding

This study was supported by the Henan Key Laboratory for Green and Efficient Mining & Comprehensive Utilization of Mineral Resources (Henan Polytechnic University) (KCF2203), National Natural Science Foundation of China (52174069), Bei**g Natural Science Foundation (8202033).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for High-Efficient Mining and Safety of Metal Mines, University of Science and Technology Bei**g, Bei**g, China

    Dayu Long, Changhong Li, Yongyue Hu, Juzhou Li & Yu Wang

  2. School of Civil and Resource Engineering, University of Science and Technology Bei**g, Bei**g, China

    Dayu Long, Changhong Li, Yongyue Hu, Juzhou Li & Yu Wang

Authors
  1. Dayu Long
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  2. Changhong Li
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  3. Yongyue Hu
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  4. Juzhou Li
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  5. Yu Wang
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Contributions

Dayu Long: Conceptualization, Methodology, Data curation, writing—original draft; Changhong Li: conceptualization,visualization, data curation; Yongyue Hu: experiments, data analysis; Juzhou Li: resources, writing—review and editing; Yu Wang: supervision, funding acquisition, project administration.

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Correspondence to Yu Wang.

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Long, D., Li, C., Hu, Y. et al. Investigation on the Prevention and Treatment Measures of Seepage Failure of the Fine-Grained Tailings Dam: A Case of Iron Tailings Reservoir in China. Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration 41, 875–887 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42461-024-00951-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42461-024-00951-1

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